Manchester City executive chairman Garry Cook has asked fans for patience as they attempt to tie up deals for some of the world's top players, having already signed Gareth Barry and Roque Santa Cruz this summer.

They are widely reported to be working on deals for Carlos Tevez, Samuel Eto'o and John Terry but it’s not all straight forward, according to Cook, who insists the Eastlands club won’t be “held to ransom”.

The Tevez deal has apparently been delayed due to the amount of work required to ensure there is no trace of any third-party ownership arrangement, while moves for Eto'o and Terry appear to depend on the players' willingness to move to City.

And while Cook admits City are unlikely to be successful in signing all their targets this summer, he wants the fans to show patience as they try to conclude negotiations.

"Patience is an emotional requirement of anything that involves sport," he told the Manchester Evening News.

"People have come to realise that you don't go from 0mph to 100mph in no time at all and expect everything to fit into place.

"There are some people who will choose to come and some who won't choose to come.

"We don't want to be held to ransom and have very clear directives about what it is we want to try to get done.

"We are talking about players of the very highest calibre on the global football stage.

"You can't have everybody, and we don't want everybody, because we have a great academy.

"We are developing young players to complement those we buy."

Cook refused to be drawn on the names of the players City were currently looking to sign as he feels it would not be in the club's best interests.

"We have always said we will keep our workings internal and don't openly discuss any of that information," he said.

"It's a good strategy and maintains our dignity because, at the end of the day, we will be playing with the very best clubs in the world and we want to behave like one of the best clubs in the world."